Cognitive processing pathways to posttraumatic growth

This study investigated the relationship between unsupportive stressor-specific reactions to the disclosure of HIV and posttraumatic growth (PTG). Thirty-eight participants were recruited online and via non-statutory organisations. The sample was predominantly young, white, male, gay and HIV was well controlled with medication. Results showed that unsupportive reactions were not correlated with PTG. However, there was a significant indirect effect through total cognitive processing. This was broken down into a two-mediator model which was also significant. It showed that unsupportive reactions trigger intrusive rumination which, in turn, prompts deliberate rumination eventually leading to PTG. Further analysis showed that models using individual subscales of the unsupportive social interactions inventory (distancing, and bumbling subscales) also produced a significant indirect effect in, both one and two, mediator models. When the indirect effects of cognitive processing were accounted for, the negative direct effect of unsupportive interactions on PTG became significant. The findings suggest that unsupportive reactions to the disclosure of HIV may act as another ‘traumatic event’ and shows similar cognitive consequences. They also suggest that there is an alternative path to PTG, other than cognitive processing, which has not yet been identified in the literature and requires further investigation

Characterization of mammalian WDR1 during dynamic actin rearrangement events.

The actin cytoskeleton functions within processes such as cell extension, migration, and neurogenesis; yet the mechanisms of actin regulation are not completely understood. WD repeat proteins (WDR1) have recently been shown to interact with actin and regulate cortical actin dynamics through interactions with cofilin in a number of species. However studies on mammalian WDR1 have not been reported. Further studies in chick systems have also indicated several cofilin-independent functions of WDR1 within cytokinesis and cell migration. We investigated the human homologue of yeast WDR1 and identified the expression of two isoforms, a full length 60 kDa protein and an N-terminal truncated 50 kDa protein. Analysis of WDR1 expression in transformed and non-transformed cell lines indicated that the two isoforms were differentially expressed. Sequence analysis revealed the WD motifs were homologous to kelch motifs found within Drosophila kelch. Kelch containing proteins are believed to mediate protein-protein interactions. Protein interaction experiments demonstrated WDR1 bound actin and formed hetero-multimeric complexes; however no interaction with cofilin was observed. Localization studies showed WDR1 localized to actin filaments (similar to vinculin) and to areas undergoing actin rearrangement with cofilin and CAP1. Interestingly, WDR1 was shown to remain attached to glass coverslips as part of a WDR1 aggregated complex (WAC) after trypsin mediated cell detachment. Latrunculin A and cytochalasin D treatments indicated WDR1 may stabilize actin filaments during depolymerizing events. Therefore, these results have provided an initial characterization of the important role of hWDR1 within the critical cellular processes of attachment and migration, and have provided experimental avenues for future pursuit.Dept. of Biological Sciences. Paper copy at Leddy Library: Theses & Major Papers - Basement, West Bldg. / Call Number: Thesis2004 .N66. Source: Masters Abstracts International, Volume: 43-05, page: 1656. Adviser: D. Hubberstey. Thesis (M.Sc.)--University of Windsor (Canada), 2004

Dining Duration and Customer Satisfaction

Restaurateurs may be tempted to speed up the pace of their customers\u27 meals during busy periods in a bid to increase table turns. While selling more covers should boost revenues, a study of restaurant patrons finds that strategies aimed at reducing dining time should be applied carefully. By dividing a dining experience into three segments, one can assess the effects of duration-reduction efforts at each point in the process. On balance, restaurant patrons do not want to feel that they are being rushed nor do they want to be unduly delayed. Indeed, it is the perception of the speed (or lack thereof), rather than the actual time spent dining, that carries the most weight with restaurant patrons. If a perceived wait is longer than what guests expected, their satisfaction is likely to diminish, along with their assessment of the server\u27s abilities and their likelihood to return. By the same token if a meal proceeds at a tempo much faster than expected, diners will feel rushed and will conclude that their server is not willing or able to attend to their needs. In particular, restaurants should approach the actual meal, that is, the in-process stage of the dining experience, with care. On the other hand, the pre-process stage, when guests are ordering drinks and reading the menu, and the post-process stage, when guests are receiving and settling the check, can be hastened in certain situations. The study found that patrons in casual and upscale casual restaurants are more willing to accept duration-reduction strategies than are patrons of fine-dining restaurants, where an appropriate pace is essential to satisfaction

How Long Should Dinner Take? Measuring Expected Meal Duration for Restaurant Revenue Management

Restaurants have two strategic levers for revenue management: duration control and demand-based pricing. Reducing dining times, especially during peak periods, can add considerable revenue for the restaurant. Managing meal duration, however, can be far more complex than manipulating the price. This paper examines dinner duration expectations for a casual restaurant using an adaptation of a price sensitivity measurement tool, naming it \u27Time Sensitivity Measurement\u27 or TSM. TSM is then used to derive the expected dining time, the optimal and indifference duration points. The results show that there is a relatively wide spread of acceptable dining duration times. Furthermore, the optimal and indifference points were significantly shorter than the mean expected dining time, suggesting that many restaurants may be able to shorten dining duration significantly (some 20 per cent in this present study) without compromising customer satisfaction. Furthermore, the paper explores whether demographic variables have an impact on time preferences and finds only nationality effects to be significant. Specifically, North Americans and Asians have similar duration expectations, while Europeans preferred a significantly longer dining time

Integrating Customer Relationship Management and Revenue Management: A Hotel Perspective

A number of authors have advocated a move towards integrating customer relationship management (CRM) and revenue management (RM). The implications of integrating CRM and RM strategies in the context of the hotel environment, however, have received little attention. The key questions that need to be addressed are: who should be targeted with CRM efforts and how will those efforts affect the RM process? This paper examines the relationship between CRM and RM. By means of the lifetime/profitability approach to customer segmentation proposed by Reinartz and Kumar in 2002, the appropriate customer segments to target with CRM efforts are identified and a supporting RM strategy is outlined for each segment. These include traditional RM, lifetime value-based pricing, availability guarantees and short-term and ad hoc promotions. The impact of these RM strategies on business processes in relation to customer segmentation, demand forecasting, information systems management and human resource management is addressed

Evaluation of modeled land-atmosphere exchanges with a comprehensive water isotope fractionation scheme in version 4 of the Community Land Model

All physical process models and field observations are inherently imperfect, so there is a need to both (1) obtain measurements capable of constraining quantities of interest and (2) develop frameworks for assessment in which the desired processes and their uncertainties may be characterized. Incorporation of stable water isotopes into land surface schemes offers a complimentary approach to constrain hydrological processes such as evapotranspiration, and yields acute insight into the hydrological and biogeochemical behaviors of the domain. Here a stable water isotopic scheme in the National Center for Atmospheric Research's version 4 of the Community Land Model (CLM4) is presented. An overview of the isotopic methods is given. Isotopic model results are compared to available data sets on site-level and global scales for validation. Comparisons of site-level soil moisture and isotope ratios reveal that surface water does not percolate as deeply into the soil as observed in field measurements. The broad success of the new model provides confidence in its use for a range of climate and hydrological studies, while the sensitivity of simulation results to kinetic processes stands as a reminder that new theoretical development and refinement of kinetic effect parameterizations is needed to achieve further improvements. Key Points Water isotope physics have been added to the version 4 of the Community Land Model An imperfect soil moisture simulation has limited impacts on soil water isotopic profiles Soil evaporative kinetic effect alone cannot rectify coupled model discrepancy with respect to water isotopic dat

Adapting data collection methods in the Australian life histories and health survey: a retrospective life course study

OBJECTIVE Ideally, life course data are collected prospectively through an ongoing longitudinal study. We report adaptive multimethod fieldwork procedures that gathered life history data by mail survey and telephone interview, comparable with the face-to-face methods employed in the English Longitudinal Study on Ageing (ELSA). DESIGN The Australian Life Histories and Health (LHH) Survey was a substudy of the Australian 45 and Up Study, with data collection methods modified from the ELSA Study. A self-complete questionnaire and life history calendar were completed by the participants, followed by a computer-assisted telephone interview recording key life events. RESULTS The LHH survey developed and tested procedures and instruments that gathered rich life history data within an ongoing Australian longitudinal survey on ageing. Data collection proved to be economical. The use of a self-complete questionnaire in conjunction with a life history calendar and coordinated computer-assisted telephone interview was successful in collecting retrospective life course information, in terms of being thorough, practical and efficient. This study has a diverse collection of data covering the life course, starting with early life experiences and continuing with socioeconomic and health exposures and outcomes during adult life. CONCLUSIONS Mail and telephone methodology can accurately and economically add a life history dimension to an ongoing longitudinal survey. The method is particularly valuable for surveying widely dispersed populations. The results will facilitate understanding of the social determinants of health by gathering data on earlier life exposures as well as comparative data across geographical and societal contexts.Supported by an Australian Research Council Grant (DP 1096778, “Socio-economic determinants and health inequalities over the life-course: Australian and English comparisons”) with investigators from the Universities of Sydney, Newcastle and Queensland (Australia) and the University of Manchester (UK)